Wax-thread and method of making the same.



- Ho l'ravzriagn FFICE.

HENRY ANSON BATES, F MIDDLETOWN, CONNECTICUT.

WAX-THREAD METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME.

To e25 whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY A. BATES, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Middletown, in the county of-Middlesex and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Waxed Thread and Methods of Making the Same, of which the following is a specificationu This invention relates to waxed thread suppiied tosewing-machines for stitching together parts of leather and like material, and particularly the outer soles and welts of-hoots and shoes.

In ordinary shoe factory practice the wax is appi ie'd to the thread as a surface coating by passing the thread through a heated waxpot associated with the sewing-machme,

thethread-passingto the stitch-forming mechanism and the wax being melted and therefore in a fluid and free condition, so that a considerable part of it is scraped off and adheres to the parts of the machine with which it comes in contact, said parts therefore requiring frequent cleaning. Moreover, the free wax on the portions of the applied thread that are subjected to contact with the abrasive surface of a buffing device used in finishing the'outer surfaces of outer soles, adheres to and clogs the abrasive surface, and detracts from the efficiency of the latter.

In all outer sole stitching machines employing a shuttle, the thread has heretofore been coated with free melted wax, and wound, while the wax is hot, in the form of a cop or bobbin, which is stored in the shuttle, and must be kept hot while passing from the diuttle to the needle, so that all parts of the machine with which the thread contacts must be kept at a relatively high temperature. Each cop or bobbin must therefore be used immediately after winding, or before the wax has had time to harden by cooling, it being impracticable to keep on hand a supply of waxed cops or bobbins for application to the shuttle and for use in sewing.

My invention has for its object to provide waxed thread adapted to be wound in the form of a cop or bobbin or otherwise prepared and shaped for application to a shuttle or other part of a sewing-machine and ready for unwinding and use without car- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 16, 1915.

' Application filed January 7, 1914. Serial No. 810,87

rying free or removable wax, the thread being adapted to be formed into stitches without being kept at the relatively high temperature which is necessary when it is coated with free or unabsorbed wax.

The invention consists in the method hereinafter described of waxing thread, in'such manner that the wax is entirely taken up and absorbed by the fibers of the thread, so that no part of the wax is free to be scraped or brush-ed from the thread, Whether the latter is heated or not, the absorbed wax being adapted to be suflici'ently softened by a relatively low degree of heat, such as that developed by the friction of the shuttle on its guides, or by other means producing a much lower degree of heat than is required to maintain a surface coating of free wax in the proper condition of softness, the waxed thread being adapted to be wound to form a discoidal body or cop, which may be kept 1n stock indefinitely, and has the desirable quality of external stability due to the light adhesion of the surface convolutions of the waxed thread to each other, so that there is no liability of accidental displacement of said convolutions, the wound body retaining its circular form until used up, and giving off the surface conx'olutions only to a positive pull exerted on the thread by the mechanism of the sewing-machine.

In carrying out my invention I dissolve wax of any kind suitable for application to shoe thread, in a solvent which is preferably a liquid hydrocarbon, such as gasolene, or naphtha, a liquid solution being thus formed. In this solution I immerse the. thread, which may be linen, or cotton, and in a locse condition preferably formed into a skein. The thread is left in the solution until it is completely saturated, the solution enveloping and beingv in contact with all the fibers of the thread. I then remove the thread from the solution and uniformly expel or remove from all parts of the "thread all the free or surplus solution. This is preferably accomplished by placing the thread in the basket of an ordinary centrifugal extractor, such as is used for drying textile fabrics, etc., and running the extractor briefly until all the free or surplus solution is expelled or thrown out from the thread. I then preferably store the thread in a drying room where it remains until the.

hard and brittle and the thread becomes stifi.-

I so regulate the drying that the wax remains somewhat soft after the dryin operation, so that the thread is flexible. The drying operation may insome cases be omitted, the thread being prepared for the market as hereinafter stated, directly after its removal from the centrifugal extractor. The uniform removal of the surplus solution by centrifugal action from all parts of the thread, including the interior, as well as the .exterior, is an important step in my method, and is a marked advantage over removal by pressure on the exterior of the thread, which tends to force the surplus to the center of the thread, the surplus being uniformly removed by my improved method from all the fibers, so that there is no more at the center than at the surface. There is, therefore, no liability of the presence of enough wax in the thread to cause exudation from the surface by pressure on the thread while it is being used, and the soiling or 1 fouling of sewing-machine parts with which the thread comes-in contact.

The filled thread may be formed into a universally. wound discoidal cop o'r bobbin, adapted for use as a charge for a sewing.

machine shuttle. It is obvious, however, that the thread may be wound into other circular forms andadapted to be carried and used in any desired way as the charge or thread supply of a sewing-machine.

The absorbed Wax solution enables the thread to'answer the same purpose as thread surface-coated with wax by the wax-pot of a' sewing-machine, and does this for an indefinite period, so that the wound body constitutes an article of merchandise which is ready for use without being coated with.

wax after being applied to the machine hence, the employment of a body of thread filled in accordance with my invention, ob-

viates the expense and all the disadvantages attending the waxing of the thread immediately before it passes to the needle, the wax-pot and. means for highly heating the same and the adjacent parts of the machine being eliminated.

The adhesive quality imparted to -the thread by the absorbed wax causes the convolutions of the wound body to adhere to each other sufiiciently to prevent any accidental displacement of the surface convolutions or any deformation of the wound body without objectionably resisting an unwinding pull on the thread. The absorbed wax has the additional effect of protecting and preserving the thread.

, The absorbed filling of wax which is dis- .tributed uniformly ,throu the thread, is ada ted to be quickly'so tened by a relative y low degree ofheat, sufficiently to impart to the thread the characteristics of thread surface-coated with hot wax, the de- 'gree of heat required to soften the absorbed wax and keep it soft during the period when softness is desirable, being much less than that required to melt wax in a wax-pot and prevent the Wax'coating from hardening objectionably before it is located. with the thread in the work, hence the employment of thread waxed according to my invention not only obviates the objectionable fouling I of the machine, but also the expense and the injury to the machine, involved b the employment of thread surface-coate just before its applicationto the work. I desire to emphasize the fact that thread waxed in accordance with my invention possesses a surface which is adhesive at a relatively low temperature, such as the mean and maximum and minimum temperatures of the atmosphere, so'that the wound bodies of thread, while awaiting use, will retain 7 their form indefinitely, the surface convolutions adhering to each other suificiently to prevent accidental or automatic uncoiling.

I also desire to emphasize the fact that the wax filling is adaptedto be softenedbya degree of heat somewhat greater than the average maximum temperature of the atmosphere, and considerably less than the degree necessary to maintain ordinary shoe thread wax in a melted condition whenthe wax is applied only as a surface coating. Thread waxed in accordance with my inven- I tion is distinguished by the characteristics above emphasized, from hard finished threads impregnated with a. hard drying composition containing a small proportion of wax with other ingredients, and lmp'arting a non-adhesive, dry, and relatively hard glaze to the surface of the thread, and not flapable of being practically softened by eat.

A shoe bottom sewed by thread waxed as described, has the following advantages over one sewed by surface-coated thread. First, greater. fiexibilityy the thread remaining relatively flexible during its entire life, instead of being stifiened b wax-applied as a surface coating. Secon ly, greater resist-. ance to the entrance of moisture to the interior of the shoe, the thread saturated throughout with wax being practically waterproof, so that its central portion does dried after absorbing moisture in the ordinary use of the shoe sufier considerable loss of tensile strength, which is not the case with thread treated in accordance with my invention.

I claim:

1. Waxed thread having its body .filled with wax uniformly absorbed and distributed therethrough, and having an unglazed surface slightly'adhesive at relatively low.

temperatures and without free or removable wax therein or thereon.

2. The method of waxing thread which consists in immersing it in a solution of wax, until the thread is entirely saturated,

and then centrifugally expelling the surplus n solution from the thread.

3. The method of waxing thread which consists in immersing it in a solution of wax, until the thread is entirely saturated, 20

HENRY ANSON BATES.

Witnesses:

ARTHUR H. Barns, v CHARLES F. BROWN. 

